Olympic Committee Confirms It Will Punish Athletes Who Support LGBT Rights In Russia

The International Olympic Committee has confirmed a fear that has overcome the LGBT and sports communities this month: a provision in the IOC charter that calls for the punishment of athletes who make political or religious displays will be enforced during the 2014 Winter Olympics.

When asked if the IOC planned to create a "safe space" of sorts for LGBT and allied athletes, journalists, contractors and other foreigners visiting Russia for the Olympics, officials told Gay Star News, "Regarding your suggestions, the IOC has a clear rule laid out in the Olympic Charter (Rule 50) which states that the venues of the Olympic Games are not a place for proactive political or religious demonstration."

While we're on the subject of rule 50 in the Olympic Charter (which states "no kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas"), the IOC has confirmed that it will indeed enforce it against displays of support for the LGBT community at the games in Sochi.

"This rule has been in place for many years and applied when necessary," the IOC told GSN. "In any case, the IOC would treat each case individually and take a sensible approach depending on what was said or done."

Gay Olympic speed skater Blake Skjellerup has already pledged, along with other athletes, to show Pride during the Opening Ceremonies by wearing a rainbow pin, a display that now may have him in trouble with Russian authorities and the Olympic Committee.

Imagine an athlete wins a gold medal in her field and when the press comes to interview her, she thanks her wife for the support she has given her during all the hard training. Imagine that athlete being arrested for flaunting her lifestyle on international media.

This is not an issue of pushing anyones sex lives on anyone else. It's about equal human rights. Right to love and right to speak up about that love. Gay athletes should have an equal right to that.

I agree that the Olympics shouldn't necessarily be a platform to protest from BUT... Imagine for a moment that suddenly you (heterosexual) were informed by the state that any form of relationship you've been engaging in whether it were sexual or purely romantic was declared illegal. Imagine that to even speak of heterosexual love was a federal offense. Imagine that vigilantes in the community were pretending to be sympathetic to heteros only to entrap you, pull you out into the streets, beat you, spit on you, torture you, pepper spray you and proudly post the videos on youtube. Would you not hope for some kind of support from your global brethran. This isn't about gays advertising to the world that they're gay and proud. This is about showing solidarity and doing anything you can to help people in need. If you've been an out gay couple for 30 years in a committed relationship, would you not be absolutely heartbroken by this new law?

Many countries have anti-gay laws, but most of them have been that way for centuries. Russia is a high profile case because they took the insane step to roll human rights BACKWARD. Also the world is watching Russia right now, so it is the perfect time to raise awareness of the unbelievable steps BACKWARD they are taking.

This isn't a "I'm gay look at me!" issue. This is a "Oh my god! murder in the streets based on sexual preference!!" issue. There is NOTHING shameful about it. These are people's children, cousins, and parents being beaten and killed.

I disagree. This has little to do with anyones "sex life", as you call it, but more with everyones personal right to be whoever they want to be without having to fear political repression. Its not the homos pushing their sex life into everything but the russian government pushing their moral values (which are entirely motivated by fear of their own, though not necessarily homosexual, sexuality) into peoples lifes. If you want sports without politics, go beat a WR in a world championship. The entire idea if the Olympics is highly political and if, as a competitor, you put your own safetiy or your carreer above that, youre just a f ucking idiot.

The olymipcs will be held in a country were gays get beat up, tortured, humiliated and have less rights than straights, it has nothing to do with the athletes but it would be nice if they showed solidarity with the gays in Russia that are suffering.But i assume by your comment you dont care about the gays that are suffering in Russia because you're tried of hearing about gays all the time.

I agree I too do not have any malice towards any LGBT person I think they are awesome and extremely strong and awesome people. With that being said, straight people do not flaunt being straight. There is no straight badge of honor or straight version of a rainbow. I believe keeping religious, political, and sexual preference out of the Olympics is important though because some people don't know how to act, and if you are intelligent enough to desire peace then why intentionally do something that might disrupt it regardless of whether you are wearing a cross around your neck or a rainbow pin on your shirt. I feel the only people who would want to disturb the peace by thinking they are above the law "rule 50" should be punished, if for no other reason than they knew better. IDGAF if you are gay. I do care if you a whiny little bitch that just wants attention. This is the Olympics you need to be recognized for your athletic expertise, and nothing else.

The part where the argument kind of falls short is the fact that we straights don't get the shit kick out of us for being straight. If we did I'm sure we'd find a logo or something to display our solidarity for each other.

You don't like people expressing their opinion, go to Saudi Arabia. I mean, if you want to keep spewing your bigotry by all means go for it, but don't expect to have many friends left unless they are all hateful and stupid like you.

Is it "perfectly alright" for letting everyone around you know that you are straight? Yes? Then you're a hypocrite -- and why should anyone follow your hypocritical anti-gay double standard?

In some countries holding hands would be considered flaunting your sexuality. Every time I see heterosexual people walking down the street holding hands I am reminded that if I did that with my partner I might very well get spat at, beaten up, or at the very least there would be the odd "faggot" exchange. So I don't do it, but if I did I would not be flaunting my sexuality any more than you would be.

If you lived in a world where holding your partner's hand could get you a beating in the street you might show a little more support and solidarity for those whose situation is far worse than yours ever could be.

Straight people walk around proclaiming they are straight every day of their lives. Did you hold hands with your girlfriend in school? Or kiss your wife's cheek in public? Or open a joint bank account? Or go to a dinner party as a couple? Just because you don't give it a second thought doesn't mean you are not broadcasting it loud and clear every second of your life.

They should "exclaim" their homosexuality to demonstrate that a significant proportion of the population (sports stars) are homosexual. They deserve equal rights, and until they have them, they need to be vocal. The squeaky wheel gets the oil.

The IOC has been hypocritical for decades. Every time they play a gold medalist's national anthem, they are being political. When they kicked out the Taiwanese athletes from the Montreal Olympics in 1976 because Communist China didn't like it, they were being political. When they kicked John Carlos and Tommy Smith out of the Olympic Village in Mexico City and sent them home after their "Black Power" protest in 1968, they were being political. When they allowed Hitler to use the Olympics as a display of Nazi fascism in Berlin in 1936, they were being political. When they stripped Native American Jim Thorpe of all his gold medals because he made a few bucks playing baseball, they were being political.

Is wearing a rainbow pin really going to highlight the big issue here? Shouldn't Blake Skjellerup boycott the olyimpics altogether wouldn't that send out a much more powerful message. Infact all the athletes who are opposed to persecution should boycott by taking part they are complicite in this regime and its propaganda - same goes for anyone who supports the games by watching them.

Our whole country and the other countries who oppose state-sanctioned persecution of people over who they choose to date/marry/love should boycott these olympics. Tough crap if it hurts US-Russia relations. Why would we want to maintain good relations with a country that jails people for who they love -- and for what music they play? Don't we have any principles left in America -- that aren't about denying things to other people, that is?

Punish?! How? Will the athletes be given 50 lashes or tarred and feathered? This is a backwards step in time. In 1996 when the Olympics were held in Atlanta, the IOC gave the Greenville-Spartanburg, S.C. area and Cobb county, Ga. the smack down for their anti-gay BS and rerouted the torch around the areas compltely It's 2013.This is unacceptable.This double standard is being applied now because the IOC is caving in to ignorant Russian homophobia. Any LGBT athletes competing in this should make their plans clandestinely and reveal them only at the last moment, while we, as a united front, should make our voices at home loud enough to be heard 'round the globe. It boggles the mind that a country which was once so deeply entrenched in socialism would have any issue whatsoever with sexual orientation...but then under their twisted interpretation of it during the Soviet era the LGBT community faced even harsher treatment. Take a lesson from history: Tommy Smith and John Carlos. Any respect I had for how the IOC handled LGBT discrimination issues in 1996 has gone right out the window with this incident.

An entire class of people are being persecuted. They are first and foremost forbidden to express their sexuality at all, but they are subject to punishment, fine, imprisonment, being beaten and even murdered. It is time for the civilized parts of the world to stand up for the oppressed as they would hopefully if the people being persecuted were Jews or Blacks or any other persecuted group. We must not sit idly by and pretend the LGBT members in Russia are okay. They're not okay and we learned lessons from the horrors of the Holocaust and the horrors of our own mistreatment of African Americans. I say we either become loud spokespersons on behalf of the LGBT community in Russia or we protest the Olympics altogether and stay out of there. And to those few people who have spoken with such hatred and violence toward LGBT people, we know from near-death experiences that you, yes you will face the reality of your hatred and your violence and you will experience the full depth of your own hatred onto yourself. Karma is real and God is real and whatsoever a man sows, so shall he reap. If he sows love, then he shall reap love, but if he sows hatred, then he shall reap hatred.

Sherbert McNuggets, I don't think you realize but white males in the States are very fortunate and very privileged, what you're missing out on is a lack of education or willingness to compete. If you don't want to lose your job or the opportunity then step up to the plate and stop making excuses. You will only find success after you admit your own faults and actually correct them. You sound like a lazy ass, which I'm not sure if you are, but you just sound so ridiculous that as a reader I can't help but paint this picture of some pimple-faced snotty teen trolling gay forums. In some cases, you may be right, you may have lost your job to affirmative action but at the same time no one will ever turn you down because you're a man and not a woman or a minority - they will have done it because you either suck at your job or you were the worst of the bunch. They will never fire you if you are productive and efficient (unless your personality is shit.)

Your arguments come across as attention-seeking and inflammatory for no other reason. I don't mean to devalue your personality but your rhetoric just seems petulant and no one here cares for it.

To respond to your comments is to perpetuate your behaviour but I feel like what you are saying carries a resentment that no one has addressed: you say you have friends that are gay but I don't fully believe that. I think that if you had gay friends (not just gay people you know) you would respect them enough to understand more about the culture and themselves. I think your curiosity about the issue is stifled by your 'I'm not a pussy' mentality. I don't mean to psychoanalyze your comments too deeply but I don't think everyone quite understands why you would post something so uneducated and belligerent on here. I can call you stupid and a bigot and whatnot but I won't because I know that these are your belief and I can't mock you for your beliefs - or lack thereof - I can only make observations. You sound like a rebellious, angsty teen and use 'fuck' a lot so it shows what kind of person you are. If you're mad at the fact that a gay or a Mexican or a woman can get a job or is treated with 'special treatment' that's because you can probably never blame yourself.

You say that you hate how gays are all loud and proud about being gay and you have to hear about it, well I'm sure that as a gnostic atheist you are just as vocal. Did you feel that mentioning you were a gnostic atheist would have changed any of this conversation? As if that defined your opinions and why you were dating these things. I was raised Catholic and although I do not practice religion I do respect a person's faith. Faith is fascinating and to have faith, in whatever it is, is inspiring. I respect religion but I don't agree with it at times, to shut your mind like being an atheist is to in fact become religious in your anti-religious thought: you evangelize the fact you don't believe as if to convince yourself and is a disrespect to others. I don't think it makes someone any weaker or stupider if they have something to believe in. Your beliefs become your faith whether you are a gnostic atheist or not.

I do agree to some extent that gay parades may go a bit too far but what you need to understand is that it isn't just a Gay Parade, in fact, it is a Pride Parade: pride in self-expression and sexuality. It is a celebration of being free and it took me a while to understand but it is a demonstration, although admittedly debauched, of sexual freedom.

I think extremist views on either side, gay or straight, are bigoted and you should always approach someone else's opinion with understanding of why the other thinks that way. It is that exact empathy that will lead to progress and understanding. I do agree that the in-yo-face approach is almost off putting because it crosses people's boundaries of comfort. I think the gay culture had become too much of a shock culture and that will never lead to understanding. Just like Sherbert McNuggets statements, they shocked but no one ever asked substantially on why he thinks that way because we have already made our conclusions - just like with a Pride Parade, no one is looking for answers if the graphics are so visual.

All in all to say, everyone stop being so whiney and get the fuck to bed. There are worse things happening to better people in the world.

If they think Blake Skjellerup's rainbow pin is political advocacy, then, to be really consistent, any athlete who thanks Jesus for his or her success or makes the sign of the cross should be fined for religious advocacy.

Of course the IOC is talking out of its ass. Rule 50, if enforced at all, will be enforced selectively, specifically for gays.

Good, we don't need faggot propaganda in the fucking Olympics. Bad enough that we have to see their disgusting demonstrations and parades everywhere and are labeled "bigots" if we don't kiss their asses and give them special treatment. Fuck off, when I get special treatment for fucking women, you are allowed to get special treatment for being a man who fucks other men or a woman that fucks other women. Other than that just fuck off and keep your disgusting shit private.

Seriously, you use the word "faggot" and then complain that you are called a bigot. Tough. You're a bigot. God's honest truth. You don't like being called a bigot, then stop being a bigot. Simple as that. But apparently that's too difficult for you. Seriously, you'd rather get upset at people for telling you like it is then consider that maybe you ARE a bigot... no, that would require THOUGHT.

WOW, you are literally the first person that responds to me tonight that seems to not be a complete fucking liberal media brainwashed idiot, and that actually sees my point and tries to explore it further, thanks!

Here goes, and this is from personal experience:

Gays get preferential treatment when it comes to getting jobs, because companies have these quotas they have to keep up with , namely a gay quota, a female quota and a minority quota, AKA "positive discrimination", which is by definition BULLSHIT because ANY form of discrimination is bad. You either discriminate, or you DON'T, reason 1.

Gays can now get social support JUST for getting married, In Norway it's been possible since 2009 which I find fucking ridiculous.

It makes absolutely no fucking sense for gay people to get extra money from MY fucking taxes just because they are gay and married. Hetero couples (married), especially younger ones historically get some extra money BECAUSE THEY HAVE CHILDREN, OR BECAUSE THEY ARE SETTING UP A FAMILY AND PREPARING FOR CHILDREN. And last time I checked, SAME SEX PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE CHILDREN BECAUSE, unlike the FUCKED human mind, nature does not work that way, literally the ONLY reason gay people want this whole marriage BULLSHIT is so that they can leech some extra money off the state, Norwegian or American, IT DOES NOT MATTER, reason number 2 why all this gay shit pisses me off.

Reason fucking 3: ALL THE ATTENTION WHORING AND MAKING SOME BIG BULLSHIT DRAMA about the whole thing and SHOVING THEIR GAY CRAP down everyone's throats. You know, I wouldn't be so fucking vocal against the whole thing if they just kept it to themselves, as I've said before, 3 of my best friends are gay, 1 male and a female lesbian couple, but you know why they are my friends? BECAUSE they LITERALLY never fucking bother me with their gay crap or shove it in my face, they just act like normal fucking people doing normal fucking things, they don't whole the whole attention whore shit.

So yeah, it's 6:30 AM here and I could go into more detail and explain to all the morons that call me a bigot why I think what I think, but I am too fucking tired, basically those 3 reasons are the main things I have a BIG problem with because, if you look at it without the fucking propaganda bullshit glasses over your eyes, you will see that ALL of those things are UNFAIR AND UNBALANCED AND UNEQUAL towards straight people.

Which brings me to my last point, ANYONE who says that hetero people are "being treated preferentially" is by definition a complete fucking MORON, because, even with the few simple examples I've shown above you can see that that is absolute fucking bullshit.

WE, normal, straight and productive members of society are now being discriminated against, specifically STRAIGHT MALES because of people that will NEVER have children, will NEVER leave any sort of legacy outside maybe AIDS, and will NEVER carry the human race forward because they are by definition, ERRORS of nature.

And THAT is what I have a fucking problem with. And if you don't like it, you can fuck off because the very liberal rules all you fucking idiots are enforcing and turning the civilized world into a shit hole full of lazy people and freaks daily with are the same rules that say I can say whatever the fuck I want to say and think whatever the fuck I want to think.

Sentence one, "gay quota", when I can't even get through sentence one without a complete BS nonsense made up lie, why would I bother reading the rest -- it's going to be full of more made up paranoid fantasy nonsense. I think you need much more than just a good night's sleep. The wake up call you need is one that your alarm clock ain't gonna provide.

>Gays get preferential treatment when it comes to getting jobs, because companies have these quotas ....

I'm interested - what's your 'personal experience' being discriminated against in hiring for being a heterosexual male? I'm empirically curious.

> ... which is by definition BULLSHIT because ANY form of discrimination is bad. You either discriminate, or you DON'T, reason 1.

I agree. I don't support affirmative action, and I don't support discrimination in hiring practices. The reason I'm curious about your experience is that I have heard personally from several people - some in charge of hiring, some speaking hypothetically - that they would preferentially not hire people they knew to be LGBT**, because they see that as potentially bringing down bad politics and economic luck on their heads.

> Gays can now get social support JUST for getting married, ...

Based on your statement just now that you don't support discrimination, I'm baffled that this upsets you.

>Hetero couples (married), especially younger ones, ..

What's your source? Do you have proof of younger couples receiving extra benefits than elder couples for marrying?

>BECAUSE THEY HAVE CHILDREN, OR BECAUSE THEY ARE SETTING UP A FAMILY AND PREPARING FOR CHILDREN. And last time I checked, SAME SEX PEOPLE DO NOT HAVE CHILDREN ...

This is, simply, false - you're right that two men cannot have a biological child, because clearly, as you say, "nature doesn't work that way," but gay couples that do want children - and some do - can adopt. They are discriminated against in some adoption processes, and in most states, only single parents can adopt. In these cases, both members of a couple are not given equal parental rights.

Furthermore, last I checked, heterosexual couples received monetary benefits for marrying, including tax breaks - regardless of whether they have children. If they do have people that they can claim as dependents - who may or may not necessarily be their children - that tax break just gets larger. It's not like they start out with no benefits and then progress to having benefits once they make the decision to get the wife knocked up.

Unproven and questionable until you can prove your claims. As far as I know, there is no detriment to the benefits heterosexual men receive in society as a result of LGBT people being allowed to demonstrate and have more, if not fully, equal rights.

>because of people that will NEVER have children, will NEVER leave any sort of legacy outside maybe AIDS, and will NEVER carry the human race forward because they are by definition, ERRORS of nature.

In what way are LGBT people "errors of nature"? Have you ever opened an encyclopedia? Many, many, many species of animals, including our closest relatives among Great Apes and Monkeys, demonstrate homosexual inclinations and engage in same-sex sexual rituals.

Additionally, it is false that LGBT people cannot leave a legacy behind. There has been at least one historical case of a pre-op transgendered person (living/identifying as male) getting pregnant and giving birth; and obviously, women who are lesbians don't suddenly stop having periods and ovulating because they prefer female partners.

Moreover, although the incidence of AIDS among gay men is problematic, it is most certainly not a "gay disease," and it never has been. This is a scientifically wrong, historically problematic, and in general tired claim.

> the very liberal rules all you fucking idiots are enforcing and turning the civilized world into a shit hole full of lazy people and freaks daily

Hmm so the only legacy gays will ever leave is AIDS and are not productive members of society? Interesting I thought working and credentialed as a Qualified Mental Health Professional, Co-Occuring Disorders Professional, Medically Assisted Recovery Specialist, Certified Reciprocal Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor, Licensed Professional Counselor, National Professional Counselor, and having my Doctorates in Psychology, Masters in Counseling, and being a Substance Abuse counselor for over 20 years helping well over 1000 clients in my years reach sobriety and becoming functioning adults strong in their recovery I was leaving a pretty hefty legacy for my co-workers and treatment facility but i'm gay so I must be wrong because you said it yourself gays will only have AIDS as a legacy which confuses me more as AIDS actually began in Africa when those working with apes came in contact with the Simian Immunodeficiency Virus or SIV for short. Although given the extreme of your rant I would suggest setting up an assessment because common sense would tell someone if something makes me that made don't agitate the situation walk away and ignore it, yet here you are still commenting and attempting to shove your view down others throats, my immediate guess is Borderline Personalty Disorder, Explosive Anger Disorder, maybe just maybe Bi-Polar 2 but that's a long shot.

I was hoping to explore your position further until it was obvious that it was (at turns) either bitter, irrational, incorrect, insulting and/or conservatively brainwashed idiocy (or is your position allowed the hypocrisy you condemn in others?). but I guess all of that is fine as long as you're straight and get to continue denying access to things like jobs to those you've arrogantly decided are inferior when the proof here shows you're just rude/crass/immature and therefore far from superior to any "human" fellow human being; while forgetting the democracy of social society that shares the benefits of tax dollars pooled from everyone - even those from the pesky but actually productive gay men and women who (through those jobs they all apparently got just because of their sexual orientation) contribute to the health and education of those poor children of heterosexuals, as well as other non-gay beneficiaries of government programming; and then hilariously/blindly/willfully ignoring the fact that heterosexuals have the advantage of spending millennia shoving their self-congratulatory & arrogantly assumed superiority as well as either political/cultural/sexual conquests down the throats of those "others."

But as a normal, straight, productive member of society, I'll go ahead and admit that I can't count how many times I've been discriminated against because of gays.

Because have been zero instances.

Your reality isn't the same as everyone else's reality, friend.

And congratulations to your gay friends and your lesbian friends, but other people feel like acting on their political leanings. Lord knows you're doing it.

Out of curiosity, what companies are you speaking of that have given preferential treatment to gays and lesbians in hiring situations? If you don't feel like naming them straight out (or can't, for liability reasons) can you at least name the industries that they're in? This is the most fascinating aspect of your well-termed rant.

Seeing as how i am Native American and get preferential treatment like free healthcare and preferential job hiring. I was wondering if you had a opinion on that? Do you feel that its wrong for Native Americans to get these benefits? I worked for tribe here in Oklahoma and also spent time on many reservations trying to educate and raise that standard of living. Many of these tribes were forced to move to these places. I know it's kind of of topic but i wanted to hear from some one with a strong point of view. But i will tell you one thing for sure, there is no "gay quota" as you say. There is no gay quota in Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Laws.

You are a bigoted troglodyte! You, as a heterosexual, do get preferential treatment. Until the recently overturned blow hole legislation of DOMA, narrow minded idiots like you received a mutitude of federal and sate benefits not given to homosexual couples. All throughout history, even before the bullshit Christian nut jobs got a hair up their ass and tried to lay claim to marriage, it was a civil not religious union. Bound by friends, family, and community NOT a god from any denomination. So go read your precious bible and have a seat on the unicorn's horn spoken of in Isaiah. Any person, government, or association that sanctions human rights abuses in any form deserves the full retribution of all other intelligent persons. Never has progress happened under the shadow of overbearing government or religion. The last time Christianity had its hay day it was called the dark ages!

I am a Gnostic Atheist, thanks for playing. I have no "agenda" other than saying whatever the fuck I feel like saying because that's what I think. That's the beauty of your liberal society bullshit, you get to kiss the asses of all the deviant freaks and I get to tell you all to go fuck yourselves. If you don't like it, tough luck.

If you weren't a mentally retarded Americunt you'd know that Gnostic Atheist pretty much means I have the biggest balls when it comes to religion because it means "Knowing Unbeliever" AKA I know god is not true and religion is complete bullshit.

The the type of atheist your dumb ass is thinking about is "Agnostic Atheist", which is the complete pussy version of an atheist that basically says "I don't believe but I'll keep my mind open just incase, because I am a spineless pussy".

But I excuse your fucking complete idiocy and lack of basic vocabulary because you're an Americunt.

No it means you have knowledge that god does not exist. That is what gnostic=knowledge, and atheist=no existence of god.
Yet you have no definitive proof, so gnostic atheists are no better than gnostic theists. You are just as bad as they are.
To make it worse, you do not even know the true definition of your belief system.

Well, you sound ignorant enough not to give a fuck about my stance, but everyone is an agnostic atheist or they're lying to themselves. I don't believe in any religion. Christianity, Islam, complete bullshit. But there's absolutely no way to determine if there isn't some creating force that would equate to something that can be called a god. An afterlife is a joke, but as a human, you cannot disprove something beyond human perception. It may not make sense, but it also makes no sense to assume against it. You can say what you will, but it isn't logical, therefore you're lying to yourself.

Beyond that, cutting off human rights regarding something that is a naturally-occuring and harmless variable is ridiculous. The only way humanity can ever hope to move forward is by realizing we're all on the same team. Religion cuts things up into teams, but I can't, for the life of me, understand why a fellow atheist would take such a toxic stance toward human rights. If you had homosexual attraction, why would you want your rights taken away? Would you really consider yourself a disgusting animal? Because I assure, all humans are already disgusting animals. Let's not transfer our disgusting nature into discrimination.

Last time I checked, Americunt, Norway was the second richest country in the world, and the average salary here is 6000 dollars a month.

On the other hand, last time I checked, America has a debt of a few hundred trillion dollars and is currently in the process of going bankrupt and will soon be OWNED by China.

You ain't dropping shit on me, son, you can't afford it.

Bet it feels real good sucking your own dick as an Americunt doesn't it? Enjoy it while it lasts fuckface, America will not even be one country by the end of this century with the way you morons are fucking yourselves up over there.

1. The deficit is $16 trillion, not hundreds.
2. China does not own enough of our debt to remotely call in their loans and own us. You lack of understanding of our deficit is shocking. I would suggest investing more time into gaining knowledge about our deficit, and less time trying to see how many times you can interject the word fuck or other insults into your uninformed posts.
3. You are a horrible troller...you are too angry for people to take you seriously. You may get a few reactions, but you are too over the top with your homophobic blatherings to suck people in.

You closed minded pussy I'm a gay American Man, and you know what you must be very very lonely. I mean you are against Feminist which I'm sure will get you no women in your life, and your against Homosexuals which means you will never feel the tender love of a man. Hmm I feel so bad for you except for one think you little uncouth CUNT and that is your distaste towards American's here I thought that we American's Cornered the market on being Bigoted closed minded assholes who feared change guess you proved me Happily wrong. But do please take your bigotry and put in a nice warm safe closet where it will be safe and nobody ever has to hear of it again.

Maybe taking all that dick up your mouth and ass at the same time dislodged your brain and caused you to think ridiculous shit about me buddy, but I am married, and I sure as fuck am more happy, productive and overall not weird than you pathetic little genetic errors will ever be. And unlike your naturally redundant ass, I will have children that will carry the human race forward, all you fags and lesbians can do is live one life and nothing else, you are more empty and broken than you will ever realize, shithead, I bet you and your kin cry themselves to bed every night.

Also, I am against feminism because it has become the same fucking unfair and unbalanced bullshit that the gay movement has become, you freaks don't want equality anymore, you want as many fucking advantages for yourselves as you can get, and as many fucking disadvantages for straight men as you can possibly get put into law. Don't fucking lie, you know it's true you bunch of hypocrites. And when me and people like me see our basic freedoms and rights infringed upon like this, you bet your fucking ass there will be backlash and hate towards you freaks, feminist scum included.

Ok. First off, you are permitted to rant. But I do remind you there are lots of gay couples raising families. I know a couple myself. And being the woman I am, I plan to have kids in a few years... and guess what, I am a lesbian. But knowing what kind of world we live in, I hope to whatever god out there she or he turns out straight so they don't have to read comments like yours. It is hateful and from what I have seen, uneducated and lacking any real or thoughtful thought. And your use of profanity just highlights that.

Further more. How am I a freak? I am a business owner who employees all people, yes, including straight people.. Go figure! I have an university education. I travel the world and have many friends. I live a 'normal' life. And how does another group having the same rights take away from you having rights. Last time I checked straight married people get tax credits and write offs that singles do not get. And said married couples using those credits have no affect on my tax situation... Just as a married gay couple would have not affect on a straight couples taxes. In addition, me having the right to give my money to my partner instead of my bigoted brother as no affect on another person's financial situation. Except my bigoted brother. I could go on, but guess what, I have to check email and run a business. ;)

Why is it ok, then, for a male to have anal sex with a female? That act also does not procreate...just like oral sex does not...no matter what type of parties are involved. Yet, it seems most guys try (not always succeeding) in having anal sex with their female partner.

Also, being that you have gay friends who aren't all vocal about it, would you still want to see them happy and find their soulmate to marry and spend the rest of their life with? Personally, I think redheads are a mistake of nature, but who am i to say that they shouldn't have the chance to be happy...they cant help they were born a ginger. I mean, really, married life is pretty typical all around. You go to work, come home, visit with your spouse, have dinner, pay bills, go to bed, sleep (because sex becomes non-existent or quite infrequent anymore), and get up to do it all again, realizing that spending the rest of your life with someone is quite a chore and not so much an exciting adventure all of the time...you know...married life.

Lastly, I don't wonder what straight people do in their own private, romantic time and I don't wonder what gay people do...it's their right to do whatever they want with their consenting adult partner. Why are you so concerned and preoccupied by only what same sex people do in the privacy of their bedroom? I've seen far more public displays of crazy, bizarre fetishes by hetero people that have left me a tad more scarred than the scenes the media chooses to show from pride parades (which hardly anyone is as outlandish as you described, but yes, there are some).

So, yeah, I'm not going to bother to argue with you, since you're clearly set in your ways. I just wanted to let you know you're a childish, pathetic, bigoted piece of shit. You're not labeled a bigot because you nobly refuse to give them special treatment, no matter how you want to frame it. No, man, you're labeled a bigot because you're a judgmental, hypocritical, scared man with no perspective on the world as a whole.

Because guess what? The world has left you behind. Within a few years, same-sex marriage is going to be legal in every state, and you're just going to have to deal with it. You can sit and scream to the skies, but you can also just go fuck off, because nobody will care what you're saying. Your time is done, and if you care this much about gay folks existing, the rest of your life is going to be full of anger, rage, and a growing sense of loneliness.

And just know that however angry and upset and betrayed you feel, you'll deserve every second of it, you goddamn disgrace.

Your whole rant would make sense if I was from America, the land of freaks, but since I live in Norway, where gay marriage is legal, 3 of my best friends are a gay guy and a lesbian couple, it doesn't mean jack shit to me.

The whole thing I have a problem with is those fucking idiots over there in Americuntland getting dressed in fucking ridiculous clothing that makes everyone within 5 miles barf, and acting in all sorts of fucking freakish ways. Have you ever seen a fucking gay parade? I saw one once when I had the misfortune of visiting that joke of a country and it was fucking disgusting.

My friends and gay people in general over here don't make such a fucking big fuss out of it and try to weasel their way into special privileges like they do over there, idiot, THAT is what I have a problem with, not the fact that they are gay.

But you keep on being a deluded cunt that thinks a lot of people like me "hate gays" because they are gay, no, we hate fucking attention whores that want special rules and treatment, MUCH LIKE FEMINISTS, I MIGHT ADD.

That being said, fuck off, it's a free world, I can say and thing whatever the fuck I want, and if men fucking other men in the ass is fine, then me saying WHATEVER THE FUCK I FEEL LIKE SAYING AND THINKING WHATEVER THE FUCK I FEEL LIKE THINKING is fine too.

Sherbet, you keep saying that gays in America want "special privileges." No, they don't. They want to be treated exactly as heterosexual couples are treated; they want to be able to get married, just as straight people can, and they want to have the same legal rights that straight married people have. Why is that so hard to understand? As far as preferential treatment in hiring is concerned, I'm not aware of any "gay quotas". Yes, there are racial preferences, but no gay quotas that I've ever heard of. And, yes, some gay people are kinda flamboyant. Whatever, get over it. As for your obsession with anal sex, you do know that straight people have been known to engage in that, too, right? :)

Hey, kiddo! You know where do they love gay parades more than in America? That's right. Germany has huge parades. Don't lie to yourself in thinking that all you hate comes from far away. Also, you should bare in mind that comparing Norway, with it's ridiculous population, with the USA or, in fact, any big country. You should have a better chance of finding out some actual information comparing the average salary in Norway with that of Berlin. If, however, you are interested in comparing Norway to the US, I would, if I were you, check the relative price levels of basic goods. Living in Norway is at least 60% more expensive than in the States, and you pay way more taxes.

Something you don't seem to realize is that, just as you don't really give any fucks about, what you call, "the big fuss" "gay people in general" "make about it", "the [gay, amongst other] people in general" don't really give a fuck about a completely nonsensical and probably very young human being like you. After all, you know, no one want you specifically to go to and/or watch a gay parade. It's really cool you have a mind and an opinion that fit into the smallest of diameters, but you shouldn't make a big fuss about that.

Finally, please don't call me an Americunt. I really have nothing to do with that country.

you do get special treatment, though. it's called "Being a straight male." Congratulations! you never have to worry about being beaten to death or being publically outcast because of something that happened on a genetic level. being LGBT isn't genetic, you say? did you choose to be straight? no, you just were? oh, what a coincidence...

also, no one is ass fucking in parades and stuff. all of that shit is kept in the bedroom. indecent exposure is still indecent exposure, regardless of the genders involved.

Are they also going to force these rules vice-versa? What happens if LGBT members are targeted by russian police/citizens, then what? Not going to help/protect them? How are they supposed to know that they're safe? Does the IOC have any foresight whatsoever when it comes to preventing possible violence and anti-gay protests, or are they only concerned with $$ and their own political agenda?

Political alignments are choices. Religious affiliations are choices. Sexual orientation is not a choice. That seems to me to make all the difference. As someone said earlier, we're talking about repression of human rights, not political or religious stances. Russia and the IOC are complicit in human rights violations if they threaten to punish LGBTQ athletes for being who they are. Furthermore, outward signs of affection differ from culture to culture. Same-sex holding hands and even kissing is common in some cultures and is completely unrelated to sexual orientation. Russia and the IOC have to expand their world view (i.e., get a clue) before making threats. In any case, we have to recognize that "big bucks" is the major player here. The IOC doesn't really give a damn about Russia's homophobia or the athletes themselves. The solution: always hold the Olympic Games in Greece. That's where they began, and Greece needs the revenue more than Russia or just about anyone else. (Yes, I know that's unrealistic; but the irony needs support.) Hold the Winter Games in the Netherlands, where same-sex marriage has been legal for more than a decade.

For heaven's sake! Have you actually looked at what is happening in Greece at the moment. Undesirables (e.g. transsexuals) are being rounded up and put in internment camps. How is that less bad than what Russia is doing? I would definitely not support the idea of going to Greece for the Olympics right now.

As for Russia. well like everyone else, the clothes I choose to wear in some way represent me. If I choose to wear rainbow colours because they represent me, is that a political choice or a style choice. Who is to judge that? Style choices, cultural norms, religious freedoms - or political statements - it all depends on the standpoint of the observer much more than on the position of the person being observed.

In regards to Blake and other Athletes if he and others are wearing the London 2012 Pride Pin with the Olympic Rings the IOC will be hard press to take any action against them. It was afterall "Official Olympic" merchandise.

The IOC also claims to uphold Human Rights in sport, without discrimination. Simply by agreeing to obey by homophobic laws they are breaching the founding principles of their own damn charter.

These greedy people are hypocrites of the highest order, picking and choosing what they are going to do, to ensure they can go ahead with the games and make a few billion.

If the IOC wants to comply to the letter of their own statements and charter, they would demand that Russia change it's law, or move the Olympics to a nation which doesn't discriminate based on race, gender or sexual identity.

People really need to read the full IOC charter, they are breaching one of their own founding principles - as they have several times before.

Last time I looked Human Rights we not political, religious or racial propaganda. It would seem to me that the OC is putting people and their Human Rights into jeopardy by having and event in a place where some folks Human Rights do not exist under current law. Talk about attempting to blame the abused!O

The IOC Rep said: "Regarding your suggestions, the IOC has a clear rule laid out in the Olympic Charter (Rule 50) which states that the venues of the Olympic Games are not a place for proactive political or religious demonstration."

Well, in that case, Russia should not be allowed to host since attacks on gay rights are clearly a proactive political demonstration.

I think IOC is right about their rule. Lgbt rights is a good cause but if they allowed it then they would have to allow other political and religious statements and the Olympics is not a place for that, however IOC needs to show more support for lgbt only bEcause they are discriminated against and need to be shown solidarity. If you win a gold medal you can't go celebrate with your lgbt spouse without being thrown in jail. PDA is counted as propaganda the lgbt there are being forced into the dark. IMO forget boycotts and wearing rainbow pins, they need to just move the Olympics and they need to start now to make it in time.

You can't expect the Olympics to be a forum for political activism. You can't expect to use the Olympics as leverage to influence and change other countries laws that is unrealistic, however you can expect the Olympics to show solidarity against discrimination. Show solidarity by black listing countries that discriminate against their athletes and such a law discriminates against a Russian athlete by prohibiting him from telling the world who he or she is.

If holding hands is illegal at the ceremony, then that is fine with me, but if one group is being targeted for the same behavior, and other groups are aloud to act that behavior, then that is unfair treatment. People should be treated equal.

From 1960 to 1992 South Africa was banned from competing in the Olympics because nations around the world threatened to boycott the Olympics if they did,. Evern the USSR threatened to boycott the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. So boycotts do work.

And what Instinct Magazine forgot to include from Gay Star News report is the IOC threatened to allow Russians to arrest LGBT athletes who stand up for equality
"The message is clear, athletes, coaches and others who step out of line – for example by wearing rainbow pins – would not just risk arrest from Russians, but also punishment from the IOC. - See more at: http://www.gaystarnews.com/article/olympic-committee-threatens-punish-athletes-who-fight-gay-russians120813#sthash.Xer2MtE3.YnQXGo5Z.dpuf"